Window-sash latch



March 29,1927.

J. D. `SHIPMAN wINDow sASH LATCH Filed No'v. 5, 1925 if da??? ey Patented Mar. 239, 1927.

UNITED STATES JOH'LNVD; SHIPMAN, OF? SAN ANGELO, TEXAS, ASSGNOBJ, BY MESNEASSIGNllDENlS,l '110il PATENT OFFICE.

IEM-MA SHIPIVIAN, OF SAN ANGELO, TEXAS.

WINDOW-SASH LATCH.

Application filed November 5, 1925. Serial No. 66,997.

M'y invention relates Vto latches of the character shown and described in Letters Patent No. 1,114,391, issued to me October 20, 1914. In that invention the swinging latch member must be moved and held away from the rack in order to raise the window sash, otherwise it catches on the rack, as it was intended to do, and prevents the sash from being` moved.

In the present invention, I have provided a construction and arrangement by means of which I'have eliminated the cord er cable for movingI the gravity latch and have provided" a form of rack with cam portions which move the swinging latch outwardly as the sash is moved, but with holding portions above the cam portions for receiving the latch member as the sash moves'in the opposite direction and holds it in that position. I have also provided in connection therewith means for catching said latch member to prevent the sash from being raised from a predetermined position without moving` the latch element from the rack.

In order to explain my improvements, I have illustrated the same on the accompanying sheet of drawings, in which,-

Figure 1 is a fragmentary view of a window sash and iframe, showing my invention applied thereto;

Figure 2 is a similar view showing a slightly modified form of rack or frame member;

Figure 3 is a detail, showing a short locking piece for use in connection with a rack of the character shown in Fig. 1;

Figure 4 is a ysimilar view of a slightly different form of locking piece; and

Figure 5 is a perspective view of the gravity latch to be mounted on a sash.

.Referring to the drawings, 1, designates a window frame, and 2, a window sash moving therein. Mounted on the sash is a swinging or gravity latch which includes a base plate, 3, with a strap, 4, and a pivoted latch member, 5, said latch member having the hook portion, 5a, and the finger, 5b. It will be noted that the lower end of said latch member is heavier and that said latch will swing by gravity to extend the hook portion, 5a, forwardly, or toward the window frame, as it swings around its pivot 6.

Mounted along the inner edge ot the window frame, 1, is a rack, 7, made of channel iron, with struck in cam elements,

8, attached at their upper ends and forming an opening, as 9, below each of said cam swing and thus lock the sash againstr neove-V ment upwardly, or downwardlly, without first manually swinging the latch member outwardly. This is intended to make it possible to raise the sash a little and hold it there until the latch is manually moved.

In Fig, 2, I have shown a modifiedI form of rack, made of solid material, with'the cam portions, 11, and the shoulders, 12, the cam portions operating to automatically swing the latch back as the sash is raised, and if the sash is allowed to move downwardly, the latch catches lon the shoulder, 12, for supporting the sash in the desired position. The lower end of this rack is provided with two downwardly facing hooks, as 13, 13, to catch the latch and prevent the sash from being raised without first moving the latch away from it. The hook portion 5a, of said latch will catch on the hook 13, or it will rest on top of one of said hooks, 13, if it is desired to support the sash raised a short distance from its lowermost position.

Instead of having the racks, 7., and 11, provided, respectively, with the holes, 10, 10, or the downwardly facing hooks, 13, 13, short pieces of rack can be used. In Fig. 3 is shown a short piece of channel iron, 14, with two holes, as 15, 15, therein. In Fig. 4 is shown a short piece, 16, with two downwardly facing hooks, 17, 17, formed thereon. These can be used at the base of the window frame to hold the window sash from being raised further after it has been raised a short distance and the hook portion 5E* has entered one or' the holes, or catches on one of the hooks, 17, 17.

lhen it is desired to raise the window higher, it is only necessary to hold the swinging latch member out until its hook portion 5d passes the holes, 10, 10, or the hooks, 13, 13, as the case may be and as the sash is raised, the cam portions, 8, 8, or 11, 11, as the case may be automatically swings said latch member outwardly until it passes the openings, 9, or the shoulder, 12, whereupon, if the sash is let move down again, said latch catches either in the hole, 9, or

on the shoulder, 12, depending on which form of rack is used. In one case the lower edge of the hole, 9, holds the latch, and the sash, and in the other case the shoulder 12, holds them. Ars the window sash is raised further, it is not necessary to have a cord or to hold the latch out, for the cam portions prevent it from catching and the sash can be pushed up without the necessity of touching the latch at all.

What I claim and desire to secure Letters Patent for is In combination with a window frame and sash sliding therein, a base plate mounted on the side of the sash adjacent the window frame, a strap secured at its opposite ends to the top and bottom of said base plate with its middle portion spaced from said base plate, said strap being,` narrower than said base plate, a latch member pivotally connected at its upper end between said strap and .said base plate and swinging,` in the space therebetween, said latch having a portion projecting over the base plate not covered by said strap and having an outwardly projecting?r linger member for manually moving said latch, the opposite edge of said latch having an upwardly projecting hook portion normally swinging toward said window frame, and a rack made of channel iron with struckin portions attached at their upper ends and bent inwardly to form cam portions to move said hook portion away from the frame as said sash moves upwardly and prevent it from catching, some of said struck in portions being omitted and holes being, formed in the outer iace oi said channel. iron, whereby said hook portion will catch by its lower side or by its upper side and prevent said window from moving up or down, as the case may be, substantially as shown and described.

Signed at Los Angeles, Los Angeles County, California, this 27th day of October,

JOHN D. SHPMAN. 

